


The paths we choose

by ferggirl



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-27
Updated: 2014-02-27
Packaged: 2018-01-13 22:24:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1242781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ferggirl/pseuds/ferggirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laurel meets Isabel Rochev three times. The third will change her life forever.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The paths we choose

The first time Laurel met Isabel Rochev was at a charity event. Oliver hadn’t shown up, but his partner in running the company had been more than happy to step up to the microphone to take credit and cast some very subtle blame. 

The woman was a genius. Just not a particularly pleasant one.

Laurel’s conflicting feelings of frustration and grudging admiration were mirrored on the young face of Oliver’s… assistant? She had been the person installing his router the last time they’d been introduced, but the glares Rochev was sending her were not about an email problem. 

"So kind of the DA’s office to spare their staff from the case against the Queen family for fundraiser purposes," Isabel had purred as she passed by. "Hard to pin down those Queens, isn't it?"

Laurel shrugged it off, downed her drink when it was clear Oliver wasn’t going to make it and left. But she made sure to catch the girl’s eye on the way out and grimace sympathetically.

Laurel had been the girl waiting around for Oliver Queen before. It was not a role she ever wanted again. 

******

The second time she ran into Rochev was after the trial. She was standing alone, torn between relief that a woman she’d known for years would not spend the rest of her life in prison, and utter shame that a case so open and shut had somehow been lost on her watch. Her stomach burned with the need for a drink.

Oliver and Thea and Moira were hugging, elated and together. A unit. A family. 

She couldn’t help the bitterness that curled inside her. Why should they get this second chance at happiness?

"As I said, they’re hard to pin down," Rochev was at her side, looking blandly at the display of affection. "But I’m sure you did your best." Her voice was dripping with disbelief. 

"Excuse me?" Laurel shook herself loose from the wave of longing and turned stiffly to the businesswoman.  

"Oh, you heard me. The assistant DA had this in the bag, and then you just happened to be put on the case. Their lawyers would have screamed conflict of interest, only he’s not interested in you anymore, is he?"

Laurel drew in an outraged breath. Never mind that she had told Oliver she couldn’t see him, that she had needed time and space to mourn Tommy - that was personal. She was ready to defend her integrity, her honor, her professionalism, but Isabel spun on her heel and glided over to the Queens. Her smooth smile turned slightly feline as she edged into their group pressed up to Oliver. 

Laurel had to bite back a nasty smile as he nonchalantly moved to leave more space between them. He’d used that maneuver on her just last week.

Thea turned to follow Rochev’s eyeline, and for a minute she smiled in Laurel’s direction. Then the line between them reasserted itself, and the younger girl turned away, her happiness dimmer than before. 

It hurt far more than anything Rochev could have said. Laurel left, heeding the call of the bottle of wine waiting on her kitchen counter.

******

The third time their paths crossed, it was months later. Laurel was at her lowest: no job, her family in turmoil, her friends either too pushy or nowhere to be found. She was on her way in to her hearing with the bar association and feeling hopeless and so very angry.

"How the mighty have fallen." The cool voice cut across the white noise of the courthouse waiting area. Laurel tensed, then laughed.

"What joy can you possibly derive from this?" she asked bitterly. "Don’t you have a multi-billion dollar company to take over?"

"I do," Isabel smiled as she sank into the chair next to Laurel and looked around the room. "But let’s talk about you. You don’t belong here, among these lowlifes whose law degrees aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on."

It was the first compliment she’d heard in weeks. Laurel knew it was a play, but she couldn’t keep her nose from wrinkling in agreement. Everyone else had turned up in shabby suits and $10 haircuts. At least she still knew how to dress for the life she’d wanted.

But she wasn’t naive. Never that. “Why are you here?”

"Well," Isabel pursed her lips. "I happen to have in my possession a letter that will discredit the allegations against you."

Laurel felt her heart rate accelerate. "I don’t understand.”

"Not to worry," Rochev assured her. "All above board. But it does come with a string. A job offer. See, I have a bit of a problem."

"I can’t work for Queen Consolidated," Laurel said bluntly.

"Yes , I assumed as much." Rochev leaned back and crossed one slim leg over the other. "No, this is a… side venture. I’m a woman of many parts. Much like you, I suspect."

Laurel eyed her exquisite designer dress and shoes, and found herself nodding. Finally, someone who still saw her value.

"The work would be straightforward. Administering a… foundation. Contracts, reviewing certain documents. The dull things I pay others to do. And the compensation…"

"Yes."

Isabel raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

"Whatever the pay is, I’ll do it." Laurel felt a rush of sweet relief, as powerful as a shot of vodka, and smiled. "I think we'll work well together."

The corners of Rochev’s mouth curled upward in satisfaction. “Good.” She pulled two letters out of her purse, and Laurel grabbed at them like a lifeline. “Give the first to the committee when they call you in. That should clear up any… misunderstandings. The second is instructions for Monday morning.”

Laurel could feel tears threatening, and she grabbed at Isabel’s sleeve when the other woman stood to leave. “I don’t understand,” she murmured. “Why?”

"I think we’ll work well together," Rochev echoed without a hint of a smile. "I’ve been looking to fill this particular position for some time. But Laurel," she warned, "don’t be late."

When she was gone and Laurel was alone again in the room of polyester suits, she caught her breath. Who would have thought her salvation would come from Isabel Rochev? When all your friends have given you up as broken, old enemies remember your true potential.

She might have just made a deal with the devil. But Laurel was willing to pay if it meant she could show them all how wrong they were.


End file.
